Protective paper package



March 3, 1936. F. s. WOOD PROTECTIVE PAPER PACKAGE Filed Dec. 11, 1935ity may wrapping paper be used, commercially,-

Patented Mar. 3, 1936 UNITED" STATES oFFIcE I 3 Claims.

The packaging of goods has become a general custom, almost an art, andthe imitation of famous brands, a racket. The prevention of imitations,substitutes and counterfeits, are the objects of this invention. Thoseobjects are obtained by means of the materials with which the package iswrapped and sealed as will be hereafter described.

It is fundamental, in this invention, that the first protection must begiven the paper out of which the package is made, and I call attentionto several patents that have recently issued or been allowed to me forsafety paper and processes of making No. 1,900,067 March 14, 1933; No.1,939,378, December 12, 1933; No. 1,951,076, March 13, 1934; and SerialNumber 552,550 application allowed December 1, 1933. It is upon thispaper and its evolution into protective paper that I rely for some of myprotective paper.

Safety paper is known to the trade and the art as being, strictly, aspecial kind of writing paper; and while there is nothing to hinder theuse of writing paper for wrapping packages, as a mat ter of fact,writing paper and wrapping paper are two diiferent classes of goods.Therefore, I define protective paper as an evolution of safety paperespecially adapted for packaging, both having certain characteristics incommon and differing widely in others. Thus, whilesafety paper could beused for protectivepaper, by no possibile for writing paper. I

While the patents above mentioned. describe certain desirablecharacteristics elsewhere set forth that a protective paper should have,there are other and later developments that are better.

In Patent No. 1,900,067 issued to me March 14, 1933, is described andspecified a paper meeting all the essentials of a protective paper,subject to the differences of furnish between a writing paper and aWrapping paper, and the differences in formulas required to make theadaptation.

A specific object of this invention isto seal a paper package .so thatit cannot be unsealed without destroying the wrapper or discoloring it;and since it would be easy to counterfeit an ordinary paper wrapper, acontrolled protective paper with my dual or safety seal is the mosteffective way of identifying an original package, while a seal thatcannot be broken without leaving evidences of tampering is the onlymeans of making a protective paper unbeatable. No matter how good theprotective paper might be, if the seal could be broken and the contentstampered with or replaced, the paper would be a worthless protection. Itshould thus be clear that both the identifying paper and the safety sealare equally important.

The present state of the art has conclusively demonstrated that thecolor blue is of a higher vibration or wave length than the color green,also that white is the perfect reflection of all colors. In obtainingthe results just described which are caused by chemicals, I know of noWay to ascertain whether those results come from the raising or loweringof vibration of a chemical composition or whether it does something topaper that causes its reflective power to break down. with age, undercontrolled conditions. Then, again, it may be due to the action ofcosmic rays, of which little is known.

There is a universal male and female or positive and negative principlethat illustrates the two essential factors of my invention. Theprotective paper is the receptive or negative member that is acted upon,and the dual seal is the active or positive member that produces a unionbetween the two members thatcannot be broken without either destroyingthe female member or giving it a hideous discoloration.

My invention includes two steps in the sealing process: 1st, the meltingof parafiin or its equivalent and the dissolving therein of a smallquantity of oil-soluble coloring matter; and 2d, the application of thismelted paraffin-color in the form 30 of a narrow band or striped coatingto a wider band of adhesive or glue while still wet and after said gluehas been applied in anydesired way. When thus applied, the two form adual seal and unite the two portions of; protective 35 paper to besealed, so strongly, that it cannot be unsealed by any other means thansteaming without destroying the paper wrapper; and any heat in excess ofmelts the paraffin which penetrates the paper'and acts as a carrier forthe 40 dissolved color, leaving irremovable evidences of tampering.

Specifically, by protective paper, I mean any of my safety papers,patented or otherwise, orevolutions thereof that I may use as theprotective 45 paper member of this invention orany other paper havingmore desirable protective qualities. This may be of any color or tintand that has the attribute of identifying itself by a simple chemicaltest or by means of ultra violet rays. In this 50 regard, my ink setpapers, patented, provide self identification by writing upon them withany permanent ink and then using any commercial eradicators comprising aweak acid and a chlorine solution. If eradication sets the ink, theprotective paper establishes the fact that it is the original package.If the ink does not set, it is not the original packagebut a substituteor imitation. Ultra violet rays'dem'onstrate the same thing in adifferent way. In addition I may also use as the protective paper memberof this invention, papers that are described in pending applications,and I also intend to use other available papers.

Another equally important factor in this invention is the proper sealingof the package, for the reason that a dual seal supplies essentialsafeguards against tampering and provides detection features that willnow be described.

I am aware that a small amount of paraffin when applied to paperprevents it from sticking to many things. I am also aware that themixing of certain proportions of paraflin with certain proportions ofresin makes it adhere to paper under the application of heat. But Ibelieve that I am tle first to use a mixture of melted paraflin and anoil soluble dye in such proportions as to cause the paraflin mixture toact as a dual or safety seal when a narrow strip of it has beensuperposed upon a wider strip of glue or its equivalent. Whether themelted paraflin-dye mixture instantly becomes a solid or not whenapplied to the glue, and whether or not it coagulates instantly whensuperposed on a strip of wet glue, is a technical point; but it doesinstantly cease to be a liquid, it ceases to spread over the surfacesthat it contacts, and it seals paper, under such conditions, which isbrought in contact with it. If this were not true, the paper contactingthe narrow band of parafiindye would not be sealed. A careful dissectionof such a seal proves that itis sealed. This is no more surprising thanthat paraffin seals the glass jar of the housewifes preserves. It hasbeen determined by instruments of. precision that this is a permanentcondition under temperatures of less than 140; but at and above thattemperature the paraiiin melts, permeates the paper, and acts as acarrrier of the oil soluble dye that discolors the paper hideously.

After the goods have been wrapped in the protective paper, it isnecessary to seal the package at the top, bottom, and along one sidewhere the overlapping edge comes. At these points, any

strongly adherent glue or its equivalent 'maypreferably be used andapplied in the usual way. See drawing. Fig. 1 shows a sheet of paper tothe right hand stippled edge of which a band of glue 2 has been applied;andto this a narrower band of melted parafiin in which has beendissolved an oil soluble coloring member; these two bands create asafetyseal for said paper. Fig: 2

shows a box that has been wrapped and safety sealed. The horizontal band3 shows the outline of the paraflin stripe on the sealed package whilethe vertical'band 3 shows the discoloration that takes place whensubjected to a temperature of 140 or more. To this band of glue -2 isapplied a narrower band 3 of a dual adhesive that is prepared by addinga small quantity of oil soluble' coloring matter to melted paraflin orits equivalent. It is obvious that this may be confined to one color orthat a plurality of colors in separate containers may be used. Whenparaflin, in liquid form, is applied to the glue, it coagulates incooling and thus prevents the color from spreading outside the narrowband. The glued edges of the protective paper are now pressed togetherand the package issealed. On account of the high degree of adherenceprovided by the dual seal, the only way that the package may be openedwithout tearing the paper is by the application of moist heat to thesealed strip. It is obvious that any tearing of the paper leaves behindit danger signals which serve notice that the package has been tamperedwith. When any moist heat, such as steam, is applied to the seals forthe purpose of unsealing, the parafiin melts at the temperature of 140Fahrenheit, and becomes a liquid. This contains the coloring material insolution and the then liquid solution spreads and permeates the papercausing discolorations which irreparably brand the package as havingbeen tampered with.

Dual seal or dual adhesive is the same thing. It is applied-as follows:First the glue is applied to the paper by means of a brush; second, themelted paraffin in which has been dissolved the oil soluble coloringmatter is applied with a narrower brush to the band of glue that hasbeen applied to the paper. The paraffin with its color carriercoagulates instantly and does not run either into the glue or the paper.Should the contents ofthe package be removed from its original wrapperand another wrapper substituted, an ink test with eradication servesnotice that the contents are not in its original package for the reasonthat ink written upon any other than the original protective paper,instantly disappears with the use of eradicators. Since the protectivepaper is made of a special type solelyfor the manufacturers of the goodsin the original package, it will be most difllcult to imitate orcounterfeit for the same reasons that the paper upon which governmentcurrency is printed is not easy to obtain for the purpose ofcounterfeiting. This purpose could only be brought about with theco-operation of a vpaper- 1. A protected paper package comprising anvimpressible member provided with such visible identifications of theoriginal package as to produce a non-duplicatable condition therein, andan active sealing member consisting of glue or its equivalent and anoil-soluble dye dissolved in melted paraflin adapted to seal saidoriginal package so as to produce a dual or safety sealed condition thatcannot be unsealed without either destroying or discoloring saidimpressible member,

said active sealing member being of a nature to show discoloration in,said impressible member when its temperature is raised to 140 or moreFahrenheit.-

2. A protective paper ackage comprising an impressible member provi edwith such invisible identifications of the original package as toproduce a non-duplicatable condition therein, and an active sealingmember'consisting or glue or its equivalent and an oil soluble dyedissolved in melted paraflin adapted to seal said original pack andinvlsibleidentiflcations of the original package as to produce anon-duplica'table condition therein, and an active sealing memberconsisting of glue or its equivalent and an oil soluble dye dissolved inmelted paraflin adapted to seal said original package so as to produce adual or safety sealed condition that cannot be unsealed without eitherdestroying or discolo'ring said inipressible member, said sealing memberbeing of a nature to show discoloration in said impressible member whenits temperature is raised to 140 or more Fahrenheit.

FRANK S. WOOD.

